Celeritas Luminis
by Caramel1941
Summary: August has his story. He finds his parents and they become a family. But what if Lyla had twins, and she knew this. She was looking for them both but found August first. This is the story of Lucy, the girl whose knowledge moves at the speed of light.
1. Knowledge is Limitless

_A/N: I have loved this movie from the start. I come from a family of music and to see music highlighted in such a way was absolutely fantastic. There is a feeling you get when listening to music that shows just how much the artist loves music. You can hear it in his or her voice when singing, or in the notes the instruments make, extending out to whoever is listening. It's like when you see someone dance. You can tell if they are truly dancing or just reciting steps. It is shown on their faces, in the sculpture of their muscles, and the energy flowing from the core to the fingertips and perfectly pointed toes out. However, I cannot deny my love of knowledge. Being able to combine the two, especially with my dream of being a writer, is a true blessing. Please read and enjoy!_

_DFTBA – Katalina_

It's there. Can you feel it? It's all around us. The wind rushes by and it is whispered in your ear. Raindrops fall and when they splash, it's inscribed in the ripples. The knowledge, it never stops. Just go outside, listen to the music, and it'll be there. You just need to find it.

I stepped off the bus into the pouring rain. Of course, it starts raining on the day I forget my coat and umbrella. But what can you do? I walk down the sidewalk and stop a few blocks away, and there it is, York Prep. I am beginning my first day of sophomore year. Normally, this would be a casual thing. But what is different for me than other students is that I am eleven going on twelve. For some reason, I am freaking out. It's not like it's my first time going here. I went here for a whole 187 days last year. I don't know why; it was one of the easiest things I've ever done. But this year it's different. I don't know how, but I can taste it in the air, in the wind when it sings to me. Something is going to change.

I shake it off as I walk up the steps in my ratty Converse. No new clothes this year, but it's not that important. It's not like I get new clothes or materials all the time. I've had these school supplies since I was seven. Usually people gawk, but when you're from where I am from, it becomes second nature to make things last.

My name is Lucy, Lucy Caulfield. I chose Caulfield after my favorite character, Holden Caulfield from _The Catcher in the Rye._ I live in a girl's home, St. Mary's, in New York. Although, most of the time I'm hanging out at my best friend's house. His name is Jacob Fletcher. He and I have known each other since we were one, even though he is a year older than me. He's like my brother, the best brother. An actor and comic since birth, he helps show the stark contrast between the both of us. I wouldn't have it any other way. He's the most amazing friend anyone could ever ask for, considering he is my only friend. I still wonder why he is my friend. Half of the time my nose can be found in a book. I don't know who my parents are, never have. I don't know why they didn't want me, but sometimes I can understand. I am a freak, being 11 years, 2 months, and 15 days old with an IQ 187.

But for some reason, however irrational, I hold on to the little sliver of hope that my parents are there and that they want me, that they will find me. It's unlikely, but a girl can hope, right?

I place my books on the bottom of my locker, organized by order of classes from left to right, spines facing out. Another year to be the shortest, another year of being the smartest, and most of all, another year of being the loneliest. I breathe in and out. It count the number of clicks the lockers make, making it to 200 by the time I open my eyes, close my locker, and walk down the hall filled with skyscrapers for people.

Time to face the music.


	2. Goodbye Hadron

_A/N: I change both perspective and point of view. When it is Lucy's perspective, it is first person. When it is the perspective of either Lyla, August, or Louis, it is third person. Just making that clear._

"What are you making?" Louis asked as he walked through the door into their new home. They got it only a month ago, two months after they found August. It was a three-bedroom apartment a block away from Juilliard. August was laying on the floor in the living room surrounded by pages and pages of sheet music, his mind having a creative burst of brilliance. Lyla was in the kitchen making a dinner comprised of spaghetti, garlic bread, and pears.

"Dinner, which will start in about ten minutes." She replied after giving Louis a quick peck on the lips. She resumed her cooking while Louis went to see August. Lyla was nervous. She hadn't told anyone this, and frankly, she felt guilty. She remembers her father telling her about August and his twin sister, about how they were alive. In her craze, she went to New York, picked up music again in the chance that it would help her find her kids, and it did! Well, one of them. She has August. That's more than she could ever ask for. With the whirlwind of adopting August, she put her daughter to the back of her mind. Until today, the day that Mr. Jeffries called. He found her, and she would find out everything about her tomorrow. Louis doesn't know, not yet anyways. He will tonight, though.

When she informed Louis dinner was ready, he picked up August from his waist on the floor and carried him over to the table, laughing the whole way there. Looking at the scene, she smiled, albeit sadly. She imagined what that would look like with her daughter there. Dinner progressed and conversations flew by, the required run through of each other's day until they reached a natural lull. _Well, no time like the present. _ Lyla thought.

"Mr. Jeffries called," August looked up, and Louis froze, fork hovering in front of his open mouth. "It's about something important. Really important, that I completely forgot to tell you guys about. I mean, I didn't mean to forget, and honestly this isn't something tha-"

"Lyla, you're rambling. Get to the point. You have something important to say…" Louis guided nervously, his hand moving as if it was trying to draw out the conversation.

"Right," Lyla said slowly, figuring out how to phrase this. "He has information, very important information. When my dad told me that August was alive, that wasn't all," _Breathe, Lyla. In through the nose, out through the mouth._ "He told me that, th-that I was pregnant with tw-twins." _Crash!_ Louis' fork clattered on to his plate as he breathed loudly, trying to get a hold of himself. The minutes passed by in silence. August sat, bewildered, trying to figure everything out. Lyla looked down at her lap sadly, her hands clasped tightly in front of her. She begged the tears that were building up in her eyes not to fall.

"Please say something." She hoarsely whispered, trying to maintain control. Her hands started shaking.

"Three months. Three months since we have gotten back together, and since we have found August, and you didn't tell me. You didn't tell me that we had another kid. How could you not tell me?" He replied tersely, keeping his temper in check and his eyes closed.

"Honestly? I forgot. I know that it is horrible to forget something of that degree, but I got swept up in knowing that my kids were alive, moving back to New York, playing music again, and when I first talked to Mr. Jeffries, we started off with what we knew. We found August first, and then I finally met my child for the first time in Central Park, right after I saw you again. I got so caught up in the sheer joy of having you guys that I put it to the back of my mind."

Louis visibly relaxed. He was still, oh was he mad, but he listened to her words, trying to understand it from her perspective. Louis wouldn't reply, so August asked, "Why now?" Both pairs of eyes darted to him before Lyla answered.

"It's like I said. Mr. Jeffries called earlier today. He said he had information on August's sibling. Actually, sister; she's a girl. He wants us-" she looked at Louis, "-to go see him tomorrow to see whatever it is he wants to show us." When Lyla pointed out that August had a sister, the blue eyes of both August and Louis sparkled.

"A daughter? We have a daughter?" Louis asked while smiling. Lyla smiled and nodded in reply. Then he laughed. Sure, he could have been told a different way, but it doesn't change the information. He had a daughter, August had a sister, and he and Lyla would find out about her tomorrow, the day they would start looking for her. He couldn't wait.

The clock ticked on across the room. Lyla and Louis sat holding hands in the uncomfortable chairs outside of Mr. Jeffries' office. Lyla's right knee was bouncing up and down and she gripped Louis' hand tightly. Louis leaned over and whispered "Relax" into her ear before kissing her temple. Lyla glanced over at Louis. "I can't help it. I'm nervous. How are you not nervous?"

"What do you mean I'm not nervous? Me mind can't stop thinkin'. But we just have to hope for the best," She chuckled softly. "What?"

"I'm sorry, but you only found out yesterday, and you are the epitome of calm. It's just…weird." He shrugged before kissing her softly. They broke apart as they heard the door open and Mr. Jeffries stepped out.

"Louis, Lyla, come on in. Louis, how are you doing since you found out? I figured that you were only just told." He said as he sat down behind his desk, looking at the couple.

"Pretty good, I guess. Scared has hell, but otherwise, excited."

Mr. Jeffries smiled warmly. "I was able to track her down. Also, thankfully, she won't be as difficult to find as August. Do you want to know about her?" They both nodded. He pulled out a file from his desk and took out a form. It had the Lyla's forged signature at the bottom and a birth certificate. He handed them the papers and showed them the documentation, explaining them as he went along. "Her name is Lucy Caulfield, born on December 17th, 1995, to one Lyla Novacek. It was 11:32 pm when she was born, seven minutes before August. She lives at St. Mary's Home for Girls, has lived there her whole life, and is currently attending York Prep. She is a sophomore this year." Mr. Jeffries looked up to see two dumbfounded expressions, eyebrows reaching their hairlines.

"Excuse me? Sophomore?" Lyla squeaked.

Mr. Jeffries nodded before answering, "I took the liberty of contacting St. Mary's, and they said that we are able to visit today. I told them that we would be there in about an hour. Does that work for you guys? Oh, before I forget, this is what your daughter looks like." He handed them a wallet-sized photo.

Louis grabbed it tentatively. They both looked down at it. On it there was a twelve-year-old girl, looked to be August's age, and she was smiling. She had a thick mane of red hair, the Connelly blue eyes, and looked like the spitting image of Louis. "Why does she have red hair? Where did she get that?" Lyla asked.

Louis chuckled. "Me mum. From what I can remember of her, she always had flaming red hair, the exact color of Lucy's, except Mum's was thinner. She gets the thick hair from you."

"She looks just like you."

"Well, I guess now it's even, because August got your looks," Louis turned to Mr. Jeffries. "Can I keep this?"

"Go ahead. We have multiple copies and a digital copy in the system." Louis nodded and put it in his wallet before standing up.

The trio stood outside of St. Mary's. A professionally dressed woman came out to greet them. "Hi, my name is Mr. Jeffries, and this is Lyla and Louis. You are?" Mr. Jeffries said while extending his hand.

"Kathleen Emerson. It's lovely to meet you three. I am assuming you are here about Lucy? My boss informed me that prospective parents would be coming here today for Lucy."

"Not prospective parents, per se. We have reason to believe that they are her parents." Ms. Emerson looked stunned.

"Really? That's…new. Well, I guess I can see it now. She looks exactly like you," She exclaimed, pointing at Louis. "Well, please, come in. I can show you around and answer any questions you may have. Is there anything in particular you would like to know?"

Lyla looked at Louis before answering, "Everything." Ms. Emerson looked over her shoulder towards Lyla and smiled.

"That will be difficult with Lucy. She is has been with us the longest, but we have yet to peel back at least one-third of her layers. Yet, she is a truly exquisite girl," They sat down in her office and received glasses of water. "She is the brightest in her class, the youngest too. She has an IQ of 187. Personality wise, she is either really quiet or really outgoing. But she is friendly, always helping the younger ones. She has a sharp wit and a biting humor. Honestly, I don't know how else to describe her. Not a lot of people can. You should meet her if you want to know what she is like."

"Does she like music?" Louis asked quietly.

"She loves it. She can't play an instrument, but she sings beautifully. To be honest, she has a voice reminiscent of Barbra Streisand. But, to her, singing is a hobby, something that she is good at. What she excels at the most is learning. She loves learning. There is always something new to learn and nothing is impossible to learn. She sees a math problem or a physics law in everything. She unconsciously counts and has the vocabulary of a 50-year-old English professor at Oxford University. She loves learning more than life, more than chocolate. Music is probably her third favorite thing in life."

Louis smiled, glad that music still ran in the family. "Is she here?"

"Not yet. And she won't be for a few hours. She has school until 3:15 and, normally she would go to her friend's house after, but I told her to come straight here today for this."

Mr. Jeffries straightened. "You told her we would be here?"

"Negative, I told her that she needed to come straight here today. She should be here around 4," Mr. Jeffries nodded. "Now I believe we have lots of ground to cover. Shall we begin?"

"Lucy!"

"Jacob!"

"Lucy!"

"Jacob Nathan Fletcher!"

"Lucy Caulfield!...You know, the effect is ruined when you don't have a middle name."

"Oh, I apologize profusely for my lack of a secondary name. Let me call my parents and get right on that."

"Damn, now I've made you mad because I indirectly brought up you parents, and now you're being mean and moody and I…completely forgot what we were arguing about." I giggled.

"I was being facetious." Jacob sighed and looked down at me. We were at the bus stop. Thankfully, Jacob goes to school nearby so we can hang out more often.

"What did I tell you about using big words?" I groaned. I have recited this conversations many times. I know it doesn't but him, that he does it just for show, but what do you do when you've been doing the gag since you were able to speak?

I feign frustration and say "It's unnecessary because the people my age can't understand it, using big words is annoying for others, it makes me seem more important than others, and that I need to use smaller words or you will not be friends with me anymore." Jacob taps my nose and jokes about me being a good girl. Jacob is at least a foot taller than me and has a thick, dark brown puff of hair on top of his evenly structured skull. He stands with his hands stuffed into his jean pockets, a dark blue denim, and a navy messenger bag strung across his back over a Green Lantern shirt.

"Explain to me why you can't hang out with me today."

"I've told you before and I will tell you again. Ms. Emerson informed me that I had to go there after school because of something important. She said something about this other social services guy, et cetera, et cetera. Trust me, if I had any way out of this I would take it. I would much rather hang out with you and get fed by your mother than go through another meeting with a guy claiming he can help me."

He sighed and I immediately saw his acquiescence. "NO! Jacob! You're not supposed to let me go! Take me to your place where I can have amazing cookies and I can cream you at MarioKart!"

"I want to! I really do! But doesn't this seem important?"

"OF course it's important!" I snapped. "It's always important! But every time something like this happens I have the potential to be adopted, which means I may have to move. I don't want to move. I like it here." I grew quiet and I glared at the people who turned to look. I felt Jacob pull his arms around me.

"Hey," he whispered softly into my hair. "You're not going anywhere; I'll make sure of that. If not me, then my mother. But I know how much you want a family. Yes, you will always have a place in mine, but you want your own parents. I want that for you. Just go there, and let me know how it goes tomorrow, okay?" I nod into his chest, trying not to burst into tears.

"Promise to save me some cookies tomorrow?" He chuckles and I feel it vibrate in his chest.

"My mom always makes you an extra batch." Brakes screeched, and I looked up to see my bus pull up.

"I gotta go." I tell him.

"See you tomorrow, Hadron!" I wave goodbye and sit on the crowded bus. As I watched the world pass by in the window and Jacob disappear from my view, I got scared of what was to come. _Breathe in, breathe out. _


End file.
